We Won! – Council Budget vote closely mirrors CNHED priorities

Today, May 22, the DC Council passed a budget that closely mirrors the budget priorities set out by CNHED this year. In a unanimous decision, the DC Council today voted to maintain the key remaining programs of the $100 million proposed by Mayor Gray, and went even farther. They also supported the Mayor’s proposal to increase the Small Business Technical Assistance Program this year. [find the original CNHED proposal here]

Fiscal Year 2014 Budget (passed May 22)

Small Business Technical Assistance
• $2 million (an increase of $208,000) in the FY 2014 budget

Housing Funding proposed by Mayor Gray
• $20 million dollars to permanently end transfers from the Trust Fund to pay for the Local Rent Supplement Program
• $5 million for Project and Sponsor Based Local Rent Supplement Program to develop affordable housing for people with very low incomes
• Full funding for the Home Purchase Assistance program which restored $1 million originally removed from the program

Housing Funding added by the Council
• $2.2 million to the Permanent Supportive Housing Program for chronically homeless households.
• $1.75 million to the tenant based Local Rent Supplement Program to eliminate housing burden for 130 extremely low income households.

Additional Housing Funds dedicated in the Fiscal Year 2013 Supplemental Budget
• $63 million dollars for the Housing Production Trust Fund (passed on May 7)

Please take a moment to thank the DC Mayor and City Council for putting forward and passing a budget that will make Housing For All a reality for over 1,000 households, and supports DC small businesses.